Patients Rights & Responsibilities

Patients Rights and Responsibilities

Shasta Community Health Center’s (SCHC) purpose is to provide high quality health care to our community with compassion and understanding. Our driving force is to remove barriers to healthcare and promote wellness for our entire community.

We want to be a partner in your health to give you the best possible care. This happens when you are well informed about your options, take part in your treatment decisions, and can speak openly with your clinician and your health care team. We respect the personal choices and values of all our patients. It is our goal to make sure your rights as a patient are respected and to act as a partner in your decision-making process.

While you are our patient, you have the following rights:

Access to Care

• To access care without worry that you will be treated poorly because of your gender, sexual orientation, culture, economics, education, religion, language, age, race, color, ancestry, creed, national origin, presence of a disability, or the source of payment for your care. 
• To get a timely response for any reasonable request made for services within the Health Center's ability, stated mission, applicable laws, and regulations. The Health Center will give each patient the health services they need to the best of its ability.
• To access urgent or emergency services when needed. 

Thoughtful and Respectful Care

• To service that focuses on your comfort and dignity.
• To service that reflects your desires, or that of your legal representative, while taking into account your physical limits as well as your social, mental, spiritual, and cultural concerns. 
• To the best and most complete care we can offer.

Knowledge and Information

• To know the name of the clinician who in charge of your care and the names of other health care professionals who will see you.
• To know ahead of time about future appointments, including the time, place, and who will be giving you the care.
• To get information from the clinician about your care and treatment in a way that you can understand.
• To informed consent, which is to get all the details you may need about any proposed treatment or procedure. This will allow you to agree or to refuse the treatment plan.

Active Involvement in Your Care

• To work with your clinician in making decisions about your care. If you choose to select a representative, they also have this right.
• To get information about and to create advance directives, which is a plan for your care if you can’t speak for yourself.

Privacy and Confidentiality

• To privacy about your care. This includes your anything talked about during your visit, the exam, and treatment.
• To confidential handling of all information, communications, and records about your care and treatment. Written permission from you or your legal representative must be given before medical records can be shared with anyone not directly involved with your care. You or your legal representative can get the details contained in your medical record, within the limits of the law.
  Respect for Patient Rights
• To express concern or complaints about your care and have them addressed without fear of risking the quality of your care or future access to care, and to expect a reasonable and timely response to your concerns.
• To expect that all SCHC staff members will respect your patient rights as well as any person that is legally responsible for your medical decisions.

While you are our patient, you have the following responsibilities:

Patient Responsibilities

• To give your health care team correct and complete information.
• To let your clinician know if you do or do not understand the treatment you are offered and what you are expected to do.
• To accept responsibility for your health outcomes by following the treatment plan given by your clinician or letting your clinician know if you choose not to follow that plan. 
• To be kind and respectful to others, both patients and staff.
• To not bring any type of weapon to any of the health center locations.
• To keep appointments as scheduled, or to notify SCHC if cancelling at least two hours before that appointment time and date.